Hot as a Pizza Oven

Yesterday everyone on the radio was talking about the heatwave - 35 degrees C in Cape Town but out here in the wheat country 30 mins from Cape Town it was 41C / 108F degrees. Sweltering. In this weather our straw bale house is wondrous, it keeps out the worst of the heat, but by no stretch of the imagination could the inside temperature be described as cool. In a moment of utter lunacy (my brain obviously affected by the heat), from the sanctuary of the swimming pool, I decided to cook us pizza for supper. This decision was made on the strength of what ingredients there were in the larder (not much, as I had failed to go shopping that afternoon) rather than on considerations of heat and energy being exuded into an already heady atmosphere. Of course once the promise of pizza reached the kids there was no going back. I struggled out of the balmy water of 29C/84F degrees, so nearly bath like, and up the sandy hill to the house, wondering just which connections of my brain weren’t fully firing.

At six in the evening the house was still cooler than outside and opening doors would only let in a hot wind. So I shut myself in and got the dough going, realised we had no bread for tomorrow either, so flour and sweat mingled as the bakery went into action. In the heat the pizza dough rose extra fast, so I had to keep knocking it down until I’d made the tomato sauce. Extremely reluctant to turn on the oven with all the doors closed and sacrifice the last vestiges of cool in the house, I left it as late as possible. So it was that we found ourselves eating pizza on the stoep as dusk fell and the breeze attained a marginally cooler temperature. Bedtime was far too late for a school night but when it is this hot some things just have to give a little.

Pizza Recipe

Great for heating up your kitchen on a cold winter’s night!

The Dough
Makes two thin crust 23cm pizzas

200g/7oz flour
15 ml/ 1 tablespoon instant yeast
2 ml/ ½ tablespoon sugar
125ml/ ½ cup warm water
1 ml salt
15 ml/ 1 tablespoon sunflower oil

Mix together the yeast, water and sugar and let stand till it froths. Stir it into the flour and salt, then mix to a stiff dough. Add the oil and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover the bowl and leave the dough to rise for about twenty minutes until it has doubled in size. Knock down and divide into two pieces. Roll out each piece to about 23 cm in diameter and put onto a lightly oiled baking sheet. Leave for 2 minutes before adding the toppings. Bake for 20 minutes at 200C / 400F.

I usually do one garlic pizza, just spreading 2/3 tablespoons good olive oil on the pizza and sprinkling chopped garlic and salt over it. The rest I put a thick fresh tomato sauce on, grated mozzerella and bacon, spinach or salami as those are the flavours of the moment. I usually have to double or triple this recipe to feed this family and cook the pizzas in relays.